


Consumption

by Yotsubadancesintherain5



Category: Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magika | Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Character Study, Gen, One Shot
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-11
Updated: 2020-02-11
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:22:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 750
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22660126
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yotsubadancesintherain5/pseuds/Yotsubadancesintherain5
Summary: Kyoko grew up in a church. It was a way of life that lingered.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 21





	Consumption

On Sundays Kyoko would join her family in church and listen to her father. He spoke with booming charisma, a force to be reckoned with, and it was a contrast to the gentle-spoken father he was at home. It was something that fascinated Kyoko.

As a child she was nearly glued to her father’s side, and her mother would laugh as Kyoko tried to mimic her father’s way of walking.

The church was quiet when there was no service. Kyoko would stare at the stained glass windows. She would run her hands over the smooth, light-colored wood of the pews and leaf through the hymn books.

And on the way to elementary school Kyoko would walk with her friends and sing songs from the hymn book. They all sounded off-key and were clumsy with the words but Kyoko knew them all by heart.

-

When Kyoko was nearly twelve she decided to impress her father and write an entire notebook’s worth of randomly selected dictionary terms and Bible verses.

Halfway through the notebook, when she wrote down one of the verses about the prodigal son alongside the definition of tuberculosis there was terrible news.

Her father was excommunicated. The support stopped and the family was cast out.

The church, still attached to her home, seemed melancholic. It was like the building itself mourned for the troubles that would soon arrive.

The days stretched out, starving with each passing minute. Both of her parents tried to get jobs but there was nothing. The weather turned to sleet and snow.

At one point Kyoko’s sister innocently asked for more food after a meager meal. The cupboards were now bare. Her father held her sister close and cried until it seemed there were no more tears to shed.

It filled Kyoko with resolve. The next day she slipped out of the house and went to a supermarket.

She caught eye of a large package of fish. It was too expensive for her wallet. It could feed her family, with the right conservation, for a week.

Kyoko looked around. There was nobody watching her.

“Let he who is without sin among you cast the first stone,” Kyoko murmured as her hands hid the package into her coat.

She left without getting caught and still ran until her home was in sight.

Her family did not ask where the fish came from.

It continued on until a savior offered salvation. Kyoko wielded the power of a magical girl.

-

After her father found her secret Kyoko ran. His words were violently different from the kindness that was his normalcy. For a moment, when Kyoko was walking alone, she wondered if she could just leave her family alone. They could go on without her. Her stomach roiled at the thought.

The nausea was overwhelming.

There wasn’t anything to feel except burning coldness when Kyoko returned home. Her mother and sister were dead, stiff in their fear and pain, lying in their own blood.

Her father’s noose creaked from the support beam.

Kyoko ran, she could only think of food that could calm the storm within her. She stole a chocolate cake from a bakery and settled on a bench. The cold air of winter made her skin burn.

Kyoko ate the cake with her hands. Her tears were unending, making the sweet frosting feel like glue on her tongue. The cake stained her fingers. Her stomach lurched and protested and still she ate desperately.

When Kyoko was done she could feel sweet bile rise in her throat. She painfully swallowed the bile and her throat felt raw.

She slept alone in the cold, tormented by the turn her life had taken.

-

It continued in a loop, without much change.

The church was burnt down and Kyoko felt so hollow –

Kyoko died in Mami’s place –

Sayaka died, and Kyoko’s Soul Gem was shot by Mami –

Kyoko wouldn’t let Sayaka die alone –

“ _Hey, God, for once show me a happy dream_.”

-

After a night of taking down a pack of Wraiths Kyoko felt oddly giddy. In a burst of needing to expend her unused energy she began to sing a childhood hymn.

Sayaka, Mami and Homura all looked at her in surprise. She didn’t really care.

The words were nearly right. Mami tried to sing along but didn’t know the words or the melody. She still tried her best to match Kyoko. Sayaka hid her amusement. Homura looked as indifferent as ever.

Still, Kyoko never stopped smiling as she sang.

**Author's Note:**

> I took some details from the Puella Wiki on Kyoko's church, as well as the ending of "The Different Story."
> 
> As for the religious references, it's generally agreed that Kyoko's father was an Anglican priest because he has a family and the church is similar to some Anglican churches in Japan. The prodigal son refers to Jesus' parable of the same name, and "let he who is without sin cast the first stone," is from John 8:7 though the quote may vary depending on the version of Bible.


End file.
